Jim James announced some exclusive news during a video interview with Tap Milwaukee Thursday night: My Morning Jacket will be on the road with Bob Dylan this summer.
My Morning Jackets has a long relationship with Dylan’s songs and it will be great to be able to see them on the same bill.
Bob Dylan’s songs have become part of the great American songbook and there are a lot of artists covering his compositions. My Morning Jacket is one of the best and most interesting of the contemporary bands around, and their covers of Dylan are all good, some are great.
In honor of Amnesty International’s 50th anniversary, a number of musical heavyweights came together for a new Bob Dylan cover album. Chimes of Freedom: Songs of Bob Dylan Honoring 50 Years of Amnesty International had a wonderful cover of “You’re a Big Girl Now” done by My Morning Jacket.
This made me check around to see if My Morning Jacket had done more songs by Dylan and they had.
Memory Lane (and other songs of love and hope) by Olav Larsen & The Alabama Rodeo Stars (OL&TARS) has been five years in the making. Why? “Personal issues” are stated as being the reason for this long-awaited release. I really like the band’s two first albums, and they received some well deserved praise upon their release.
Perhaps it takes someone from such a great distance to authentically come to grips with the true breadth of Americana.”– Dallas Observer
I have been eagerly waiting on a new record from Olav Larsen and his companions. Is it as good as I’ve hoped for?
I’ll come to that, first a bit of history.
Olav Larsen was raised in the Norwegian town of Sandnes and introduced to his father’s music collection of blues greats including Blind Willie McTell and Robert Johnson which again led to Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen. As Olav began to fine-tune his own tastes it was a healthy diet of Guy Clark, John Prine, Steve Goodman and Townes Van Zandt that he first feasted on, before turning his attentions more recently to Bright Eyes, Will Oldham and Howe Gelb among others. (press release)
Allmusic (introduction to the review of their first album):
You’ve got to love the back story of Olav Larsen & the Alabama Rodeo Stars. Larsen’s all-American alt-country, it seems, is made by an African-Norwegian who found his way there via records by Gram Parsons, Hank Williams, Neil Young, Uncle Tupelo, John Prine and the like. The Alabama Rodeo Stars? Never seen Alabama. Scandinavians all. But no gimmick, this.
Ok, that was the history lesson, so how is the new album?
It is a better sounding record that’s for sure. The sound is fuller and it has a distinct sound, the sound on the songs are more a part of a “whole album”, a more complete experience. The production sounds more professional. I do not know who has produced and mixed the album, but it sounds really good!
Apart from the production, what strikes me the most is the musicianship. The players are at the top of their game and they clearly have a genuine love for the music. It sounds like they are having fun. They have a great band dynamic and it often feels like it was recorded live in the studio. This is hard to pull off, but this band does it!
When Olav Larsen sent me the songs, he said, “I hope it’s not too country for you.” I replied, “Can it ever be too country?” He laughed.
There are songs on the album that are really honky-tonk, but there are elements of blues, gospel and rock’n roll all through the record. This isn’t slick Nashville or pure Bakersfield, it is a stew. It is a mix of all the good things in country music. This is real roots music.
Let’s take a look at the songs. 11 song about love in all it’s glory, and in all it’s misery. Songs you can only sing after you’ve lived some.
Let’s listen to the fine title track, Memory Lane (live acoustic):
Stephen Ackles (15 february 1966), a son of Norwegian mother (Bergliot Kittilsen) and American father (Allan Dale Ackles), he is a singer, pianist and songwriter. He is mainly a rock’n roll/boogie artist and his main inspirations are Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry and Little Richard.
He recently did a version of the song Satan on Norwegian television, it blew my mind. Ackles have always been a good craftsman but his choice of material has been , eeh… questionable. He has lived a hard live, gone bankrupt and found Jesus, he has toured a lot! Ackles has released thirteen albums and has worked with giants such as Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Waylon Jennings, and Jerry Lee Lewis. His fourteenth album will be released as I write this, and will of course include his interpretation of Satan.
And finally the song he was born to sing came along. Satan. Stephen Ackles tears his soul out, the agony and pain of a hard life is personified in this great performance. His face twists as he spits out his rage and sorrow.
Satan (aka Killing For Satan) is a relatively obscure song by Paul Wibier. From the 1969 film Satan’s Sadists.
Paul Wibier’ original – Satan (Audio):
A fantastic trailer for the very entertaining biker movie, Satan’s Sadists:
Director Al Adamson’s Satan’s Sadists is the jewel in the trashploitation king’s crown, mixing hippie hopheads, choppers, whacked-out violence, LSD trips and groovy music. Russ Tamblyn sheds his “boy next door” screen image as the kill-crazy gang leader Anchor, supported by one of drive-in cinema’s all-time great casts: John “Bud” Cardos (with Mohawk), Robert Dix (with eye patch), Greydon Clark and Regina Carrol (the future Mrs. Adamson) as “The Freak-Out Girl.” Buckle up and brace yourself for “probably the grossest biker movie of them all.” (The Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film)
– Hallgeir
Sources: NRK, Wikipedia, Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film by Michael Weldon, stephenackles.com
Otis Redding’s “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long” is an R&B hit love ballad of the ’60s that has lost none of its soulful power with the passing decades. Redding’s success with the single was second only to that of his ever-popular classic “Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay.”
~Joslyn Lane (allmusic.com)
I’ve Been Loving You Too Long” became Redding’s first Top 40 single, in June 1965. And when Redding performed a scorching drawn-out version at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 — in front of the audience he called “the love crowd” — the single made the transition from hit to legend.
~rollingstone.com
I’ve Been Loving You Too Long (Monterey ’67):
Wikipedia:
Released
April 19, 1965
Format
7″ single
Recorded
Miami: 1965
Genre
Soul
Length
2:49 (mono version, April 1965)
3:09 (stereo version, July 1965)
Label
Volt/Atco
V-126
Producer
Otis Redding
Jerry Butler
“I’ve Been Loving You Too Long” (sometimes issued as “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now)”) is a song written by Otis Redding and Jerry Butler. It appeared as the A-side of a 1965 hit single by Otis Redding – and subsequently appeared on his thirdalbum, Otis Blue: Otis Redding Sings Soul. Although Redding had been appearing in the U.S. Billboard Pop and R&B charts as early as 1962, this was his first big hit, reaching #21 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was his first Top 5 Billboard R&B chart, peaking at #2. The B-side of the single “Just One More Day,” was also a minor hit, reaching #15 on the R&B and #85 on the Pop chart. The song is ranked #110 on the Rolling Stone magazine’s list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Album version:
Lyrics:
I’ve Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now) by Otis Redding
I’ve been loving you too long to stop now
There were time and you want to be free
My love is growing stronger, as you become a habit to me
Oh I’ve been loving you a little too long
I dont wanna stop now, oh
With you my life,
Has been so wonderful
I can’t stop now
There were times and your love is growing cold
My love is growing stronger as our affair [affair] grows old
I’ve been loving you a little too long, long,
I don’t want to stop now
oh, oh, oh
I’ve been loving you a little bit too long
I don’t wanna stop now
No, no, no
Don’t make me stop now
No baby
I’m down on my knees Please, don’t make me stop now
I love you, I love you,
I love you with all of my heart
And I can’t stop now
Don’t make me stop now
Please, please don’t make me stop now
Good god almighty I love you
I love you, I love you, I love you
I love you, I love you
I love you in so many different ways…
I love you in so many different ways….
Live 1967 – London:
Notable cover versions:
The first cover of the song was a recording by The Rolling Stones in 1965 — shortly after Redding’s original version became a hit.
The most widely known cover version of the song was by Ike & Tina Turner in 1968. It was the lead track from their 1968 Blue Thumb album entitled Outta Season. Live at Altamont Festival 1969:
Aretha Franklin recorded a cover for her album Young, Gifted and Black (1972).
..the songs on Doolittle have the power to make you literally jump out of your skin with excitement.
~NME
Doolittle is a mix of the band’s earlier hardcore storms, Black Francis’ selfdescribed “stream of unconsciousness” rants, and the strange melodicism and surf-metal guitar that defined its creepy magic.
~rollingstone.com
Debaser:
Wikipedia:
Released
April 18, 1989
Recorded
October 31 – November 23, 1988 atDowntown Recorders in Boston, Massachusetts and Carriage House Studios in Stamford, Connecticut
Genre
Alternative rock
Length
38:38
Label
4AD, Elektra (initial U.S. distribution)
Producer
Gil Norton
Doolittle is the second studio album from the American alternative rock band Pixies, released in April 1989 on 4AD. The album’s offbeat and dark subject material, featuring references to surrealism, Biblical violence, torture and death, contrasts with the clean production sound achieved by the newly hired producer Gil Norton. Doolittle was the Pixies’ first international release, with Elektra Records acting as the album’s distributor in the United States and PolyGram in Canada.
Pixies released two singles from Doolittle, “Here Comes Your Man” and “Monkey Gone to Heaven”, both of which were chart successes on the US chart for Modern Rock Tracks. The album itself reached number eight on the UK Albums Chart, an unexpected success for the band. In retrospect, album tracks such as “Debaser”, “Wave of Mutilation”, “Monkey Gone to Heaven”, “Gouge Away”, and “Hey” are highly acclaimed by critics, while the album, along with debut LP Surfer Rosa, is often seen as the band’s strongest work.
Doolittle has continued to sell consistently well in the years since its release, and in 1995 was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. The album has been cited as inspirational by many alternative artists, while numerous music publications have ranked it as one of the most influential albums ever. A 2003 poll of NME writers ranked Doolittle as the second-greatest album of all time, and Rolling Stone placed the album at 226 on its list of “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time”.
Tame:
Music:
Doolittle features an eclectic mix of musical styles. While tracks such as “Tame” and “Crackity Jones” are fast and aggressive, and incorporate the band’s trademark loud–quiet dynamic, other songs such as “Silver”, “I Bleed”, and “Here Comes Your Man” reveal a quieter, slower and more melodic temperament. With Doolittle, the band began to incorporate further instruments into their sound; for instance, “Monkey Gone to Heaven” features two violins and two cellos. Several tracks on Doolittle are constructed around simple repeating chord progressions.
“Tame” is based on a three chord formula; including Joey Santiago’s playing a “Hendrix chord” over the main bass progression. “I Bleed” is melodically simple, and is formed around a single rhythmical repetition. Some songs are influenced by other genres of music; while “Crackity Jones” has a distinctly Spanish sound, and incorporates G♯ and A triads over a C♯ pedal, the song’s rhythm guitar, played by Francis, starts with an eighth-note downstroke typical of punk rock music.
Here Comes Your Man:
Accolades:
Publication
Country
Accolade
Year
Rank
Hot Press
Ireland
Top 100 Albums
2006
#34
Juice
Australia
The 50 Best Albums of All Time
1997
#2
NME
UK
100 Best Albums
2003
#2
Panorama
Norway
The 30 Best Albums of the Year 1970–98
1999
#1
Pitchfork Media
US
Top 100 Albums of the 1980s
2002
#4
Q
UK
Ultimate Music Collection
2005
*
Rolling Stone
US
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
2005
#226
Spin
US
100 Greatest Albums, 1985–2005
2005
#36
Slant Magazine
US
Best Albums of the 1980s
2012
#34
Tracks:
All tracks were written by Black Francis, except where noted.
“Debaser” – 2:52
“Tame” – 1:55
“Wave of Mutilation” – 2:04
“I Bleed” – 2:34
“Here Comes Your Man” – 3:21
“Dead” – 2:21
“Monkey Gone to Heaven” – 2:56
“Mr. Grieves” – 2:05
“Crackity Jones” – 1:24
“La La Love You” – 2:43
“No. 13 Baby” – 3:51
“There Goes My Gun” – 1:49
“Hey” – 3:31
“Silver” (Francis/Deal) – 2:25
“Gouge Away” – 2:45
Monkey Gone To Heaven:
Personnel:
Pixies
Black Francis – vocals, rhythm guitar
Kim Deal – bass guitar, vocals, slide guitar on “Silver”
Joey Santiago – lead guitar
David Lovering – drums, lead vocal on “La La Love You”, bass guitar on “Silver”
Additional musicians
Arthur Fiacco – cello on “Monkey Gone to Heaven”
Karen Karlsrud – violin on “Monkey Gone to Heaven”
Corine Metter – violin on “Monkey Gone to Heaven”
Ann Rorich – cello on “Monkey Gone to Heaven”
Production
Steve Haigler – mixing engineer
Matt Lane – assistant engineer
Simon Larbalestier – cover image, album booklet imagery
